I went with Ironman 4x4... I like the safety ratings, the classic look and the price was right.
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My ARB looks badass at Starbucks.
I also believe that only Ben at Dissent is willing to modify the bumper to look correct and close the gap with a 1" body lift. Not sure if that matters to the OP.
TJM T17, light, strong looks great with the lines IMHO. Cost at the time, it was $750 now its $950 so getting closer to a Dissent price. Easily fits a 9.5k Gen 3 Smittybilt XRC.Not sure about the front, but Mike at Bump It Offroad will do the same. He was the only one I could find willing to help me with that problem in the rear.
Loved mine on my hilux. Ahole driver deterrent back in Manila.
View attachment 2484463
Still contemplating if I “need” one on my Lx considering safety during road trips, chances of animal strike etc
It was a Morimoto D2S 5.0 full retrofit with LED tube DRL on a bnew depot housing. Thought of getting it sync’d with a sequential signal light but threw the idea out as I wanted to make it classy than ricey.I love the lights. Can you share the type?
Definitely unique.It was a Morimoto D2S 5.0 full retrofit with LED tube DRL on a bnew depot housing. Thought of getting it sync’d with a sequential signal light but threw the idea out as I wanted to make it classy than ricey. View attachment 2484481
While there are lots of possible reasons (function, reputation, build, cost, looks) to go with a particular bumper, I'd imagine that if we continued long enough with this thread it would boil down to two general uses: crawling or general protection. This speaks to the intention of the users for their vehicles, must be considered with their answer, and is something you'll have to ultimately answer for yourself.
For crawling, or more technical offroading, you're going to come up again and again with Slee, Dissent, BIO, some others, and of course, custom fabbed. General protection is going to lead you to ARB, Ironman, Dobinsons, TJM. The rub of it is that all of these bumpers have the same general function, but some are better or worse than others in very specific scenarios. There will always be compromises. The independent vendors here on the forum will give you the most options.
To your question specifically, I went with an ARB Deluxe and a Comeup 12.5. My intended use is as animal protection, but also as a platform for mounting lighting and camera equipment (no, not for an overlanding Youtube channel). A steel bumper with bullbar gives me plenty of rigging options (magnetic and clamped). It also gave me a good platform for a foot forward winch, which is used more for clearing trails than recovery. It is adequate for pushing things off a road, and easy to touch up when I've added scars. I don't do any crawling, but I've always gotten where I need to go. All of these reasons make the ARB more capable than the Tupperware, or at least that's my justification. I also think it looks right on a 100. I haven't had the ARB long, but it's been worth its weight in gold so far.
As far as winches, I don't think you can go wrong with Warn or Comeup. Others have more experience with various brands. I see no reason to not go with the biggest you can fit. Headroom is always good.
A non-negligible number of people get them because of potential animal strikes that could destroy their truck in the absence of a bumper, as evidenced by the responses in this thread. Those folks hope to never need to “utilize their benefits”, but having it is better than not...OEM because most people with metal/aftermarket bumpers are just larping.
Very few utilize their benefits other than looking cool for whoever they care to impress.
OEM because most people with metal/aftermarket bumpers are just larping.
Very few utilize their benefits other than looking cool for whoever they care to impress.